My advice is to focus on quick tasks that get results. Put simply, work on mini-projects that advance an Internet business which don’t take long to complete.

With this post, you’ll learn to maximize those small blocks of times. Specifically, I’ll detail how to turn a few spare moments into an activity that produces real income. To make things easy, I’ve broken it down into two sections:

Direct Activities: These are the tasks that immediately improve online income

Indirect Activities: These are the productivity “hacks” that make you more productive. This gives you more time on income producing tasks

Finally, I’ve annotated how long this activity typically takes. This is an average. So as they say in advertising: Results may differ

Let’s get to it:

Direct Ways to Increase Internet Income

#1 – Find a New Product to Promote

It doesn’t matter what market you’re in. You will always have followers who love buying new products. (This is probably because some people feel a need to stay on the cutting-edge.)

Use this to your advantage. Find new products and promote them to your audience. You’ll discover this is one a quick way to increase Internet income.

This doesn’t mean you pitch something just to make money. Instead look for problems/obstacles in your market. Then market a paid product that provides a solution.

With this task, you’ll spend time on product research. The best places to look are:

Related blogs and websites

Google Adwords advertisements for related keywords

Email lists of other Internet marketers

YouTube videos in your market

The “New Product” listings in Clickbank

Promoting a new product is a great way to increase Internet income. The trick is schedule time to do this task.

Time Required: 1 Hour

#2 – Write an Affiliate Endorsement

Create a piece of content that endorses a particular product. Don’t make it full of false promises. Instead explain why you like this product.

All you do is talk about how it helps solve a problem. Or saves time. Or teaches an invaluable technique.

Because this recommendation is in YOUR words. You’re not telling people to go buy a product. Instead you’re explaining how it’s helpful.

Another thing…This endorsement is evergreen content. Whenever talking about a related concept, you refer to this page. This is a great way to add value while preselling followers on something that makes money.

Time Required: 30 Minutes

#3 – Send a Repeat Email

This is a great tip for people who use email marketing to promote products.

When sending an email, there will be people who don’t open it. You can increase income by sending the same message to this group of people. All you need to do is change the title.

For instance, in Aweber you can segment subscribers by anyone who hasn’t opened an email. Simply go to Search Subscribers –> Select Field –> Message Not Open

This technique works great for those emails that produce income. Just wait a week from when an message was delivered. Then send it again…with a slight modification to the title.

Do this task on a bi-weekly basis and you’ll generate extra income from a list.

Time Required: 5 Minutes

#4– Create a Hybrid Page

A great way to make money is to adopt a no-selling approach.

What do I mean?

You’ll create what I call a hybrid page. This is a mix of quality content that subtly promotes a product.

You don’t push people to buy a thing.

Instead you give lots of great content. And then talk about how a product helped you achieve a personal/professional breakthrough.

You might wonder: How long does this take?

Only a few minutes…Especially if you have lots of great content.

Example: Right now, I’m putting together an Email Marketing 101 course. This is a streamline version of the blog content that’s already posted. This course will provide lots of great information. At the same time, it’ll recommend an autoresponder course that I absolutely love! (Look for this in a week.)

My point is you don’t have to reinvent the wheel with a hybrid page. Just recycle existing content. Turn it into a mini-course that recommends a product that you found extremely useful. This makes money because you’re giving value before asking anything in return.

Time Required: 40 Minutes

#5– Include an Advertisement

This technique works well for sites that don’t use a lot of advertisements (like mine.)

With this task, you’ll post a banner image for the products that produce the most income.

Honestly…this task doesn’t add that much income.

However, it’s deadly when combined with ideas #2 and/or #4. You don’t send people directly to the merchant’s site. Instead have them check out content…you’ve created…that promotes a premium product.

Example: Check out Steve Pavlina’s blog. All of his “advertisements” are for pages that review products. Visitors read this page and go to a merchant’s site with a buying mindset. You better believe he makes money from this income strategy.

Time Required: 10 Minutes

#6 – Create Thank You Page Income

Every Internet business should have a thank-you page. Moreover, every thank you page should have an advertisement.

What is this?

A thank you page is where people are directed after signing up for a newsletter or buying a product. Usually it provides download instructions.

Most don’t realize the thank you page is THE place to make money. It’s a vital piece of virtual real estate. You can increase Internet income by creating an advertisement for a top-rated product.

Don’t believe me?

Last month (April), I made $2700 from my thank you page:

This was from 100% free traffic! People come to my site for a lead magnet. Once they subscribe, they’re redirected to a page with download instructions. At the end is a simple advertisement for my best affiliate product.

This tiny action has (and will) generate thousands of dollars of income – Each month!

No too bad, if you ask me.

Time Required: 20 Minutes

#7 – Split-Test your Squeeze Page

It’s simple math:

More subscribers = More money

There are many ways to increase the number of subscribers. But there is really only one way you can do it a few minutes – Split testing.

#9- Contact Five Potential Affiliates

Again, this is a technique for product owners.

THE best way to promote a product is to build a solid affiliate program. Problem is…it’s hard to get people’s attention.

I have simple, but super-effective solution. Contact five people each day and ask them to check out your affiliate program. (I did this in 2009 and it brought my info product to the top of the Clickbank Marketplace.)

Contacting potential affiliates doesn’t mean sending spam messages. Instead tailor each email to the individual. Make it personable and give a reason why their audience would like your product. (It should be something more than it makes money.)

Obviously you’ll need an outstanding affiliate program. This takes a lot of time to put together. But once it’s in place, this program can become a highly effective recruitment tool.

Time Required: 30 Minutes

#10 – Write an Autoresponder or Broadcast Message

They say the money is in the list. Problem is most marketers often ignore this asset. A quick way to increase income is to send an email to your list.

You don’t have “sell” in this email. Instead it can be a link to a page that directly earns income. (Like what I discussed in ideas #2 and #4.)

One of the best uses of your time is to create email content. Not only does it produce income, it also strengthens the relationships you’ve built.

Time Required: 40 Minutes

Indirect Ways to Increase Internet Income

#11– Insert a Pop-Up Advertisement

Yes, pop-ups suck!

They annoy the hell out of people.

But…they get results!

I don’t recommend using advertising pop-ups. Instead create one for an email list. (As we’ve learned, this is a great way to build long-term income.)

Example: On my affiliate site, I’ve had seen a 20% increase of subscribers. All things being equal, this equals to a 20% pay raise!

Get started by using a script like Pop Up Domination. This is a tool that’s had a direct impact on subscriber numbers. Try it yourself and you’ll see what I mean.

Time Required: 30 Minutes

#12 – Poll your Audience

You don’t need a massive course to make money with an information product.

In fact, it’s often better to create a mini-guide that’s full of actionable content. Charge around $10 and people will snatch them up like hotcakes! Even better…make one per month…and you’ll have a catalog of information people will want to buy.

If you’re a blogger, you need to analyze the hot spots on your site. These are the key areas where people are clicking. The trick is to create a design where people are going to the right places.

How do you do this?

It’s easy. Install (or use) Google Analytics. This tool tracks all the stats on your site – Specifically it shows where people are clicking.

With this task, you’ll identify the key points of your site. Then you’ll change one thing and see if it increases this targeted result.

Time Required: 20 Minutes

#16 – Eliminate One Distraction

It’s time for simple math:

More Time on Income Activities = More Money

Ideally you want to focus most of your time on the tasks that make money. Unfortunately you can’t do this when you feel overwhelmed. It’s like trying to take a sip from a fire hose.

With this task you’ll identify the things that distract you:

Are you wasting time on the Internet?

Do you have too much email?

Is your phone ringing off the hook?

Are you getting results from Facebook/Twitter or just goofing off?

I’m not sure what distractions you face. So it’s important to list everything on a piece of paper. Include everything that prevents you from focusing on the important, income-producing activities.

After that, create a plan for HOW you’ll eliminate this distraction. You don’t have to do them all at once. Instead focus on getting rid of one each week.

Example: My biggest distraction is surfing the Internet while writing. 50% of my time is spent creating content. So you can imagine how time I’ve wasted because of this distraction.

One day, I decided to fix this problem. The solution was simple. Now whenever I write, I turn off the wireless capability on my laptop. This gives me an extra step that I have to take if I want to surf the Internet.

This five second solution literally saves hours of work time each week!

Take time to think about your distractions. Perhaps you’ll discover a quick solution that helps you focus on income activities.

Time Required: 10 Minutes

#17 – Create a Process or System

Everything you do online can be broken down into a process. Have you taken the time to create one?

Take a look at your business. Is there any task that’s important but doesn’t need to be done by YOU? If so, create a step-by-step tutorial.

This blueprint will then be passed along to a hard-working outsource worker. This is yet another way to find extra time that’s devoted to income-producing activities.

Time Required: 40 Minutes

#18 – Network with One Person

Networking has its benefits. It’s easier to do business when people like you. The trick is to get off your butt and start making contacts.

With this task, you’ll make contact with a person who doesn’t know you. This can be anyone who has a strong presence in your market.

Here are a few tips for networking:

Respond to a Tweet they’ve posted

Write on their Facebook wall about something they’ve discussed

Send a personal email

Ask a simple question

The important thing is to be helpful but not intrusive. Nobody has time to read a long-winded manifesto. Instead, make it simple to start a dialogue with this person.

I try to make my “Monday” post here specifically actionable and often quite large. It is what I like to call my “MVP” post

-I may have overdone it a bit on this one, though-

Many of these are common ways, hopefully many people are already. Hopefully everyone will find a few they are NOT using, though.

Trust me…they all work wonders, with little “extra” effort.

The Thank you page is one that is a particularly powerful one. You want two things from it.

1. A good product: Of course you do not want to steer someone towards a crap product immediately after you get them to sign up. that is bad karma waiting to bite you in the butt.

2. A good converting product: Conversion and quality can often (unfortunately) be two completely different things. A product that is both…is golden…. and derves a prominant place on your “thank you” page

There is actually an endorphin high people get after making a buy (or even a free purchase decision) it makes people more likely to make another purchase decision. I think I will go into this a lot more in a future post, but for now, just remember thank you pages are VERY valuable sales real estate.

Even just skimming quickly – this is good stuff! I’m totally saving this article so I can read it more fully and more importantly, come back to it again and again, using it like a swipe file of sorts. Thanks so much!

It took a long time to write this. Probably 4-5 hours. Perhaps more if you include things like “research”. I try to make my “Monday” posts extremely valuable pieces of content, and they are also often long.

Hopefully many people are already implementing some of these strategies.

If not adding one new one in per week could be a great way to increase your bottom line for money and productivity without adding too much work.

After all, most people agree that adding 20 backlinks to a page will significantly increase your organic search results and likely make you more money.

I would argue that you could do ALL of these steps in far less time than it takes to make the 20 -Quality- back-links and gain far better results.

(not that adding more links is not worthy also…just time consuming and something great for outsourcing)

It’s been a long time! Hope you are doing great!
As for me I’m going through an extremely busy period in my life. Just posted a quick update on my blog yesterday about it. Have been pretty much out of the blogosphere. This is the first time in about more than a month that I’m hopping on to a blog, and it’s not at all surprising that that blog has to be yours.

I mean, look at this massive post! Like Jane already said, this could have easily run into a whole series. But I know how your Monday posts go. You give other bloggers a bad name! LOL!!

Got to get through another couple of tough weeks, and then I’ll be back into the blogosphere with a bang, albeit nothing to beat your MVP’s. I’ll see you then!

Hi, Steve
This is one awesome post. I am just sorry because I think I can’t apply all of these on my blog. Or I just don’t know how to do it. I simply don’t expect that blog about family topics can’t generate so much income. Of course, maybe I am wrong.
You would probably found some solution. A true genius.
I will certainly try to improve my home page. Great tips about that you have here. And maybe I could find some nice product to promote. Thanks a lot!

You be right, some of these topics might not work for your blog. Not because there are not opportunities and things to sell, but because your niche is too wide (in my opinion).

It would take some effort (and would be a process over time) but one way to remedy this would be to segment specific sectors of your audience and of course follow up by ranking on google.

What do I mean by this… Let me explain.

I noticed a couple of your articles were about getting in shape. You could invest some effort and make this into a full on ebook (to use as a lead magnet) Like I recommend in this article I wrote for Tristan.

Obviously this would be from your unique perspective (active mother/wife and what you personally know about getting/staying in shape)

-OR-
You could do the same beauty products, tips…etc.

really the choice is yours

Then you target your readers with your free lead magnet ebook as step one.

Step two would be making a landing/squeeze page page that you will have to work to rank on Google

(I know, we are talking about a lot of work here)

But at that point you should begin to get a steady flow of subscribers to your free product and you can begin to use ALL these tips and make sales. Just off the top of my head you could then

Push good amazon affiliate products (Jillian Michaels, Kettlebells, treadmills…the list is nearly infinite)
And of course there are TONS of CB affiliate products in the health/wieght lose/exercise niche. The hard part is finding the “good” ones.

I know, it is a lot of work. Even this reply seems long winded (and I tried to be concise) But I took the “You would probably find some solution” as a challenge.

Anyhow, none of this is “needed” if you enjoy what you are doing, but they are the steps needed (in a nutshell) if you really want to make money at it.

I loved this list. These things are just about to make sense to me although I’m new to the affiliate marketing scene. Loads of great ideas here. Sending the same email to subscribers who didn’t open the first one <– that's a great idea!

Thanks! I am glad you do find the list useful! Hopefully you will use it as a checklist!

Thanks,

Steve

jessica burciaga

Great List! I really like the last suggestion about promoting your content. You mention that you have a check list of what you do after you write a post. Can you share that info with us? I think that would make an awesome blog post. I am always looking for more ways to promote my content.

Excellent post, I also bookmarked it for further reference. There is so much information here that I couldn’t read or absorb it all in one sitting. Thank you for offering these suggestions.. It looks like I have some work to do.

This post is HUGE and it makes me feel enthusiastic so that I would take my whole day just to follow these tips above. Why don’t you take this post off and turn it into another successful ebook for bloggers?

It’s a pretty long list and I think I had to skim through some but this is a wealth of information. Mini-guides even a small amount per month can be profitable, no? Not only that it rakes is some cash, you also build trust and community with your readers.

Thank you for your very kind words! I worked pretty had o make this article in depth and it is a pleasure to hear good things about it!

AM is certainly something that builds with time. For me one of the real keys is building and promoting that email list. Everything revolves around that and making that better through split testing and building a relationship with your list.

For sure promotion is essential. Direct monetization I am not sure on.

I made a living online before I ever wrote one word on a blog. So actual on-page monetization can be an after-though, and to be honest I have seen some pages with so much direct monetization it almost turns me off.

Of course if you are talking about indirect monetization too, like building a list and creating a sense of community, I of course agree.

I think 16 by far is the most important. If you can work on eliminating distractions you’re going to go very far. Most internet marketers would be a lot more successful if they weren’t distracted by email, facebook, twitter, rss readers and the like. Thanks for the great read

I Agree. For some this could be almost a culture shock change. But those people could perhaps be far more productive if not online all the time. Of course there is something to be said for their networking and connections via social media. This is probably part of the reason i am not as good at my social media connections, but for me productivity comes first and foremost

Undoubtedly this is a great post – lots of great, actionable information.

There’s two things on the list that we could have a debate – or a blog-off – about.

One is Pop Ups. I know they ‘work.’ I loath them. I’m sure you;ve been through the arguments for and against.

The other is ‘monetizing’ the Thank You Page for opt-in subscribers. I really, really don’t like this practice. My viewpoint is that it’s too soon to be selling to people….now, I hear ya that it’s effective. But I just don’t like it – I’m interested in building long term relationships and personally whenever I encounter it, it pisses me off.

I certainly hear you about the pop-ups. I certainly understand both sides of that one. I dislike them myself, but they also produce results. I sort of go back and forth with this. I get results from pop-ups. Then I get sick of having it on the site and remove it…but it creeps back, because it does get results.

I can certainly see the point of the “haters” of pop-ups. At the “right” times I agree.

As for the Thank You page. I have to hold firm in my position on this one. It is really valuable real estate. It can be low-key. You don’t need to push “hard”. It SHOULD be an offer your believe in -as well as- something that converts. I agree you do not want to burn bridges before you even get a chance to build relationships. But I get a hefty percentage of my sales from thank you pages in my main niche. Often 100′s of dollars a day.

It is valuable real estate and you catch people in a “buying frame of mind”

I do see your point about building relationships. But if you the buy a fantastic product, that they love…wouldn’t that help to strengthen the relationship a bit?

Duly printed out and pinned over my monitor. Great list. I always wonder what I can do that is constructive in about 15 minutes, usually first thing while I wait for the kettle to boil and the bath to run. One thing I often do is watch an IM video as they are usually reasonably short, most are 5 minutes or so.

These are the perfect tasks for what you talk about. None of them take those “hours” to be effective, yet some of them still have some quite nice returns on your time invested. Glad you liked the ideas. Let me know if you see a ‘bump” from them!

Awesome! I always love all the Bookmark, tweet etc. love! Appreciated. I find time to be a crunch sometimes doing my stuff as a full time job, I can only imagine how precious time it to you trying to get your online stuff to fly AND working a full-time job AND balancing your familial responsibilities. Much respect, bro, and hope this helps!

Hi Steve, this is a really good list. I particularly like point #16. The web has the potential to provide so many distractions such as checking Twitter, Facebook etc so it’s important to blank these out to make the most of your time.

I like to try and follow the 50 minute rule where I work hard for 50 mins in every hour and take a 10 minute break to get a change of scene, make a drink etc.

In fact I do not talk about it as much in -this- post, but I stick to a fairly strict weekly task schedule where i break everything i do into 50 minute chunks so I would (for instance) have 3 blocks a week to do “quick tasks” and I would work on things like these, and once i hit that mark for a “block” onto a break/different project.

It is also amazing how much more you can get done when not distracted by all the silly things online. Not that they do not also have their place and time. But constantly throughout the day they are distractions. Thanks for dropping by Jamie.

waterpearls

Hi Steve,
It is a very nice and informative post.Thanks for sharing direct ways to increase internet income.This post is really helpful for me.

“This doesn’t mean you pitch something just to make money. Instead look for problems/obstacles in your market. Then market a paid product that provides a solution.”

Thank YOU!!! I said the same thing to someone yesterday ( i just emailed them this post..) glad to see I am not the only one. find products that fill the needs of your visitors, dont just promote a product because its hot, new, or somewhat relevant to your niche.

Priceless words.

As to your comments about overdoing it in this post, I dont think so. REmember, sometimes because you think something is basic and common sense, not everyone does. I have gotten several people telling me that I shared things that they had never heard before, and to me they are basics that I learned way back when I started.

Yup, you are a guy who “gets it”. We are, of course, looking to make sales.

But the job isn’t trying to force a square peg into a round hole. It is about finding exactly what someone needs…when they need it. If you can do this a few times you will have a loyal person who will be on you list FOREVER and likely make multiple purchases when you find those things that fit there needs.

I think that people need to stop blaming the government for not having jobs and look for other ways to make money. What you’ve mentioned in this article is of great value for those who look to work but cannot do much in real life. Thank you so much for sharing this.

Lots of meaningful content in every sentence. I’ve bookmarked this page for personal reference also! Some, points like..an advertisement on the thank you page…is exactly the kind of advise I needed. After, i make a few changes, i’ll be back here to see what’s new, and to post how it all turnes out. Thank you!

hi Steve. Thanks a lot for these steps. I do have couple of sites that are meant to sell affiliate products. I follow already some tips you give here but it does not go as good as i would like. traffic i do get but no really sales. i guess i need to analyse the page more

It may take time, but with numbers should come sales. Hopefully you are just in a statistical, “trough” but if you are getting numbers but still nothing for a while… it is certianly something you want to look at.

Are you in too broad of a niche? Is your niche one that doesn’t lend to sales. Or are you “off-topic” (IE blog about pears and sell apples)

I never imagined that thankyou page too can be used for advertising and affiliate marketing. Why not, as every person signing for newsletter or your product is already interested in your offer and chances of converting are more on a thankyou page. Awesome idea, Steve. Thankyou.

It not only works but it works surprisingly well. There is a fairly well known psychological fact (that i think I will do an in depth post on someday soon) that shows that people are far MORE likely to buy after they have made a “buying” decision.

This is the reasons that “upsells” can work so well. While signing up for a list may not be a buying decision for everyone..there is similar though processes involved and for many this can hold true, so not only is it good “real estate” but it it is MORE likely they will buy than if they just saw the ad on your page.

I particular like the points you make about analyzing your homepage this i something i have been looking at our the pass couple of weeks as you rightly said steve the main thing you want from your visitors should clearly be highlighted and to the point.

I have spent a fair share of time on the warrior forums too! That being said, it is important you take action rather than just read about things.

One great way to do this it was on time learning. You can study a topic just before, or just as, you’re going to implement it. That way you can get your time and the warrior forms but you’re not reading stuff that’s far off topic that you may not use for a long time to come.

Steve, what a fantastic list. I Am trying to build a system to use and this sort of thing is very helpful in doing so.
Much as I value your advice however, I don’t think I could ever put an advert in a pop up. I hate them and they make me want to scream. I understand what youv’e said about them working, and its worrying – I feel the same way about long sales letters which won’t ever tell you the price!

Good job recommending Aweber on step #3. However, your readers that are just getting their feet wet in this business might want to take a look at other so called “auto-responders” (like the free to some extent MailChimp). Why am I saying that ? Instead of paying $19/month (Aweber) you might want to pay $0 if you have up to 2k subscribers and you need to send under 12k mails/month. Of course the FREE MailChimp account doesn’t have all the features that Aweber does but for the first few months I think it will suffice. Well, just my 2 cents.

You make a good point. Aweber is a lot better, but you are 100% right. For someone learning/on a tight budget Mailchimp could be a better option, for sure. Ultimately when you get Aweber you can import your list from it to Aweber with minimal hassle too. Thanks for adding this to the conversation. Usually when I talk about autoresponders in a “longer” form I do mention just what you said.

Hi Steve, this is a really good list. I particularly like point #16. The web has the potential to provide so many distractions such as checking Twitter, Facebook etc so it’s important to blank these out to make the most of your time.

Steve,
You blow my mind! Thank you for being so generous with everything you have learned. I’m just starting out so I’m going through information overload for sure but I must say your tips are zero fluff and all to help others. I appreciate it so much.
Thanks you,
Tim

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